come_sailaway | Lights Go Out and I Can’t Be Saved

Who: Valdis and Open with Some Closed
What: Valdis does stuff around the Serena Eterna, feel free to join her
When: September
Where: All over
Warnings: In each starter

Confusion never stops | Crichton | CW: None

Valdis hasn’t seen much of Crichton since she tried to remove Harvey last, but with her and Cassandra’s suspicions, she knows she needs to talk to him. He appears to be in his room on this particular evening, so she gently knocks on his door.

“Crichton?” She calls softly, trying to find the balance between worry and rage.

It’s not his fault that Harvey took over and started targeting people, but if he’s losing time again, she felt that he should have told her. Or at least somebody.

“Are you there?”

Closing walls and ticking clocks | Siffleur | CW: none

The one person she’s been avoiding is also the one person who she needs to see and it was only a matter of time before the two predators ended up in the same room by accident or on purpose. There’s a tightness in her chest when she sees Siffleur at one of the tables in Sand Dollar, anxiety perhaps. She’s been refusing soul energy again for fear of killing someone. She’d managed for awhile last time, but she knows she’s weakening herself by not having any backup.

But she still tries to ignore him, making some coffee and heading to a table with lots of room for escape should it be necessary.

Gonna come back and take you home | Open | CW: none

Valdis is struggling, but trying to keep her schedule as normal as possible. Meditation in the morning sunlight, sword practice in the afternoons. Reading a book from Cassandra in the spare quiet moments. Sometimes she practices what she’s reading, but mostly it seems frustrating for her and she’ll shut the book firmly before grabbing something else.

She’s doing her best to not withdraw from her friends, but she is less outgoing than people are used to, spending hours in the library or drawing people she knows on the ship.

Event Starters | Open | CW: The flowers are dangerous

Red Rose:
A rose by any other name is still as sweet and the red roses growing on vines in the library smell sweet. So sweet that anyone who smells them falls in love with the next person they lay eyes on. Valdis is wearing a makeshift mask and trying very hard to avoid getting too close to the flowers as she searches the shelves for a specific book.

Angels Trumpets:
Valdis sits in Sand Dollar reading, and another of her sits across the table, the one clearly trying to ignore the bookless one as she smirks and says in hushed tones:

“It wouldn’t have happened if you hadn’t gotten so weak. Trust is so human.”

Purple Hyacinth:
If her past self following her around hadn’t been bad enough, the purple hyacinths growing outside her door decided to make her day even worse. Faces of the people she’s killed, the ones in the village, keep coming to mind. People she knew. People who didn’t deserve it. People who had once been friends.

She’s back at the bar and drinking as much as she possibly can, making sure it’s not the non-alcoholic stuff. She needs the real stuff and anyone who sees her can clearly see that she has probably had too much, even if they know it doesn’t affect her.

I could not stop that you now know | Wildcard | CW: As Necessary

PM to discuss or just go for it!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"I don't... love the idea of letting him drive on purpose..." But they really need to know.

"He's scared of you, though. You could probably force him back. Or just drop me if you have to."

"I don't like 'dropping' people, Crichton."

It hurts her to do so anyway.

"But I do want to know."

"I don't like getting dropped, so it's mutual." Still better than letting Harvey have free rein.

An idea occurs to him, then. He has that lightbulb look in his eyes.

"When you're in your wolf form, you can hear him can't you?"

"I can, yes."

Though Harvey had been very upset when she had first done it and then Crichton had yelled at her. She's pretty certain it's her fault that Harvey decided to start messing with Crichton's life.

"Do you want to try it that way?"

It would certainly accomplish all their goals.

Want may be a strong word. He doesn't want to do any of this, but he needs to.

"Yeah. I do. I know I didn't take it well the last time but things have changed. I know I can trust you in there." And he doesn't give a shit what Harvey thinks.

"Let's get some answers."

"I'll be right back."

She slips into his bathroom, making sure to shut the door so she can take her clothes off, she doesn't need Harvey leering. Her Hound form won't fit in the bathroom, so she does open the door right before the shift, slipping out as black fur flows over her body and she grows and rearranges herself into the wolf. Valdis shakes off once the transformation is complete.

Alright, Crichton. Let's ask your demon some questions.

Crichton winces at that transformation. That sounds... not great. But now he has a wolf large enough to ride like a horse staring him down. It doesn't stop being scary just because he knows it's Valdis. He hopes Harvey is feeling the same.

"Front and center, Harvey! I know you're listening." He says it out loud because it's easier that way.

"Oh, yes, John. I'm listening. I'd say it's a pleasure to meet you, again, Valdis, but you could tell it's a lie so why bother?"

Oh, I think we are far past such trivial lies, Harvey. We've met often enough to know we dislike each other. I'm simply wondering if you dislike me enough to risk everyone on this ship just for a petty, short-termed revenge.

"Dislike? No, no, no, no. I hate you. Almost as much as a scarran."

"That's saying something," Crichton interjects. "But you didn't answer the lady's question."

"Perhaps the lady isn't asking the correct questions?"

You know exactly what I'm asking, Harvey. You listened in on the entire conversation I just had with Crichton, you are simply trying to exert authority that you don't actually possess.

Damned parasite. She curls her lips back to show her teeth.

Did you put my name down for the Melee?

"What if I did?"

That's not a denial.

I think you already know I have it in for you, so the Status quo remains unchanged, I simply start paying attention to sign-ups moving forward.

Dammit Harvey!! Crichton feels sick. So, it really was his fault. Harvey really has been no more under control than ever. Maybe he should move back to the brig...

"Don't bother, Valdis. I'm not going to use the same trick twice."

"How the hell did you do it, Harvey? How didn't I see?" Crichton demands.

"You said it yourself, John. You didn't notice such a small gap in your memory. A mere few seconds. More than that and you would have noticed."

Crichton's anguish is hard to ignore, but for his sake, she will not comment on it.

Careful, Harvey. No one stays dead here so your tricks don't hold much weight, and now others are aware of your shenanigans.

She has more allies than he does after all. But it's not hard to beat the number zero.

"You have both done a good job of making sure 'others' are aware of me already. It changes nothing. No one stays dead here, but it hurts you far more than me to do the killing. That's why you won't do more than growl at me."

He's not about to tell either of them he has more allies than they think. Let them both assume they've gained the upper hand.

If you are so certain of that, why test it? Why risk being wrong?

She will get him before he hurts anyone else, he just doesn't believe she will. Granted she has failed twice, but not through any fault of her own.

"Why else? To watch you suffer."

"Okay," Crichton cuts in. "I think we've heard enough."

Valdis growls and bites back a reply out of respect for Crichton. She can feel his stress and this might set him back when he has been doing so well.

At least it fuels the ship.

Very well.

She shifts back, summoning the armor as she does so.

Crichton can hear Harvey's "awww" of disappointment in his ears when she summons the armor to cover herself, but he ignores it.

"Valdis, I'm sorry," he says as soon as he can look her in the face again. "I'm so sorry."

"I don't blame you, Crichton."

And she's really no longer surprised, but she is concerned about what Harvey will do next and what he has been doing behind Crichton's back.

"I blame me." He huffs. "I really thought I was getting a better handle on things. Even moved back up out of the brig. I should have known."

"I'm not going to lie to you and say everything is fine because it clearly isn't, and there are things I cannot tell you because Harvey will also hear them, but you will get through this."

There has to be something in the book she borrowed, something that won't hurt anyone.

"But things will be ok."

He's glad she's not bothering to lie to him about this. Nothing about any of this is okay. He doesn't see how that's going to change.

"I really wish I could believe that..."

Lights Go Out and I Can’t Be Saved

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Gonna eat those words later, Harvey

yum yum

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good to wrap this one up here